Get Fixed or Die Tryin'

The American Society of Civil Engineers released the 2009 edition of their Report Card for America's Infrastructure last week, and, to little surprise, the literal foundations upon which our society functions aren't making the grade. America banged out a fat "D" overall grade among fifteen categories of infrastructure, ranging from roads and rails to dams and drinking water. This mark stays consistent with ASCE's previous edition of the Report Card in 2005, although ASCE has upped the estimated amount of funding needed to bring our nation's infrastructure to "good" condition-from $1.6 trillion in 2005 to a measly $2.2 trillion currently needed. Yes, President Obama certainly has his plate full these days.

One doesn't have to be an aspiring civil engineer to be aware of the nation's deteriorating infrastructure. Infamous examples such as the Interstate 35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis or the failing levees that led to the flooding of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina are two of the most notable incidents, but everyday occurrences such as the traffic gridlock that seems to plague nearly every American metropolitan area are daily reminders of infrastructure not being up-to-date with the times. Many of the issues that the Report Card touches on are amenities that we tend to take for granted and are heavily, if not completely, subsidized by the government-roads, rails, wastewater treatment, schools, etc. Allison Dickert, who works with the National Chapter of ASCE in Washington, D.C., notes that "congested highways, overflowing sewers, and corroding bridges are constant reminders of the looming crisis that threatens our nation's prosperity and our quality of life." The report card explains it nicely-more than a quarter of bridges in this country are either "structurally deficient" or "functionally obsolete"; nearly $7 billion is needed for maintenance of public parks, beaches, and recreational facilities; there are nowhere near enough rail lines to accommodate the anticipated growth in passenger rail; over $300 billion is needed to get public schools into good condition; nearly half of Americans do not have access to bus or rail transit; billions of gallons of untreated wastewater make their way into surface water each year (partly due to aging wastewater treatment systems in older cities); and, of course, America's roads are in less-than-stellar condition, with congestion hurting the economy by an average of $710 per person. Put simply, nearly all of these are problems that most people are already aware of; this Report Card shows that the magnitudes of these problems are perhaps even higher than we thought.

So how will the American people deal with this evident infrastructure "crisis," among the other problems pervading throughout the country today? Well, it looks like many individuals have started to get the message already. Sure, Congress can spend lots of money to repair and improve existing infrastructure, which will help somewhat to alleviate congestion, pollution, and wasteful energy consumption, as well as create jobs in the long run. However, it has become quite obvious that there are many problems that we can't just "build our way out of"-for instance, I'm pretty sure anyone reading this is familiar with Charlottesville's own congestion problems. Instead, people are responding by driving less, carpooling, utilizing transit, and promoting this newfangled uber-hip "green energy" trend. While other problems may not be able to be tackled except through actual physical makeovers to the system (such as dams and railways), many people are willing to grin and bear it until these utilities are improved.

Of course, Congress's sweet $800 billion stimulus package might be a helpful aid in righting America's infrastructure ship. The latest plan circulating through the House calls for $30 billion for highways and bridges, $20 billion for schools, $3 billion for airports, and over $5.5 million for new and existing rail and transit systems. This money is intended for "shovel-ready" construction projects-needed, necessary, and ready-to-go ventures that aren't "bridges to nowhere." In addition, the bill calls for $4.5 million to the Army Corps of Engineers for environmental projects deemed critical to the economy, $1.5 million for green-technology low-income housing, and (the big one) $100 billion to encourage use of "greener" energy and lower our nation's overall consumption. If this bill passes, it should obviously aid in a wide variety of infrastructure projects, but should also create many jobs in the process.

One should note that the amount of funding in the stimulus package is far less than the estimated $2.2 trillion needed to bring our infrastructure to "good" condition, and a decent amount of the money within the stimulus package won't even be going toward infrastructure. I have no idea from where ASCE thinks all of this $2.2 trillion is going to come, and, quite frankly, I don't think anyone does. But that's alright-repairing and improving America's infrastructure has been a struggle since towns first started popping up in this country, and the recent downward turn can be partly looked upon as an indictment of the American late 20th Century/early 21st Century often-reckless development craze. This is a monstrous country with huge cities that continue to spread and devlop outward-don't you think there's a cost for all the infrastructure needed to connect this sprawling nation? Things may get worse before they get better, but America will continue to make improvements each day, and this stimulus package will hopefully provide a huge boost. But the real improvements will come as American social and community trends continue to change for the better.